'Fly Me to the Moon' Fact vs Fiction: What Scarlett Johansson movie changes from the real story
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: 'Fly Me to the Moon', starring Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum, is a rom-com film loosely based on NASA's Apollo 11 mission.
Commander Neil Armstrong became the first human to land on moon and this epic moment was witnessed by estimated 650 million people on their television screens.
Building the premise around NASA's achievement, the film also addresses the conspiracy theory claiming that NASA faked the moon-landing.
As the film arrives in cinemas and reignites the chatter if the landing was real or fake, we have listed down everything that Apple Studios has changed about the real history to deliver an engaging narrative.
1. Shady hiring of a publicist
The film revolves around Kelly Jones (Scarlett Johansson), a smart marketing specialist who can sell anything to everything. For her, the lines between advertisement and lies are quite blurred.
One evening at a bar, a government official named Moe Berkus (Woody Harrelson) approaches her and gives her an opportunity of a lifetime.
Kelly is now tasked to sell the moon to American public who don't give two cents of their attention to NASA and its mission.
Her hiring seems entirely fictional, discrediting the organization’s real efforts to educate the public.
As per a report by The Marginalian, NASA hired a bunch of ex-news reporters, tasked to give accurate information of Apollo 11 mission to the public.
In America's Space Race with Soviet Union, these PRs had to revamp NASA's public image and make people invested in their mission.
2. Actors posing as scientists for interviews
In the film, Kelly wants the engineers and scientists to appear for the interviews for publicity purposes. When they refuse, Kelly hires doppelgangers to pose as NASA employees for news channels.
In reality, no such absurd stunts were pulled off. The PR office of NASA ensured that TV channels had ample opportunities to interview the scientists working on Apollo 11 mission.
3. NASA astronauts appearing in commercials
For wider reach, Kelly makes the Apollo 11 astronauts endorse several brands ranging from watches to energy drinks.
In reality, NASA has strict policies against promotion or endorsement of commercial products and services.
As per NASA's official website, "Astronauts or employees who are currently employed by NASA cannot have their names, likenesses or other personality traits displayed in any advertisements or marketing material."
4. Filming of fake moon landing
The biggest creative liberty taken in 'Fly Me to the Moon' is showcasing the attempt to fake the moon-landing.
The movie shows the PR office of NASA filming a fake moon landing in case the Apollo mission fails. In a desperate act, a government official ends up forcing the PR to go ahead with the fake version, despite Apollo 11's success.
In reality, there is no evidence that US government and NASA faked the landing and the floating conspiracy theories have never been proved.
How to stream 'Fly Me to the Moon'?
Produced by Apple Studios, the film takes the theatrical route for its release on July 12, 2024. In case you miss watching the film in cinemas, you'll have to wait for the digital release.
'Fly Me to the Moon' is expected to arrive on Apple TV+ by the end of this year.
'Fly Me to the Moon' trailer